Who Will Speak for You?

Susan Estrich on Feb 27, 2025

Good for Janet Mills, the governor of Maine. On Friday, at the White House, she did something that too many politicians have been afraid to do.

She stood up to President Donald Trump and stood for the rule of law.

The issue was Trump's threat to cut off federal funding for public education unless states comply with a recent executive order barring transgender athletes from participating in women's sports teams. On Friday, the Civil Rights Office of the soon-to-be dismantled Department of Education -- which used to be in the business of protecting discrete and insular minorities -- announced that it was opening an investigation into the Maine Department of Education's inclusion of transgender athletes. The announcement followed an earlier announcement from the Maine Principals' Association that it would follow the Maine Human Rights Act, which bars discrimination based on gender identity.

"Is Maine here, the governor of Maine?" Trump asked at a meeting of governors at the White House.

Maine was there. "Are you not going to comply with it?" Trump asked Gov. Janet Mills, referring to his executive order.

"I'm complying with state and federal laws," she said.

"Well, we are the federal law," Trump replied. "You better do it because you're not going to get any federal funding at all if you don't."

"We're going to follow the law, sir. We'll see you in court," she said.

"Good, I'll see you in court. I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one," Trump said. "And enjoy your life after governor because I don't think you'll be in elected politics."

Is Trump really ready to take school lunch money away from a state because a handful -- or less -- of transgender women want to play sports?

Is this really what he was elected to do?

Most of the money for public education comes from state and local taxes. But some 8-10% comes from federal aid, for programs like school lunches and the federal Head Start program. This is what Trump is threatening to take away.

Title IX of the Education Amendments was intended to protect discriminated-against minorities, not to punish them. Trump's executive order is a violation of Title IX, not an implementation of it.

Trump clearly believes he has the power to punish not only transgender girls but also anyone who stands up for them. With Elon Musk's money behind him, he thinks he can end the political career of anyone who crosses him. The arrogance, and anti-democratic attitude it reflects, is breathtaking.

And he makes no bones about it. He is "federal law." It's his way or the highway.

Mills is a fixture in Maine politics. The 77-year-old former prosecutor, the daughter of a prominent Republican former U.S. attorney who served under Eisenhower and Nixon, does not scare easily. She took on Trump as Maine's attorney general, clashing with the then-president on immigration and abortion issues before becoming Maine's first female governor in 2019.

"He's weak and ineffective," Trump said of her during the campaign, after accusing her of planning to bring 75,000 immigrants to the state. His accusation was, of course, wrong. Clearly, he didn't know who he was talking about. He does now.

This is not the first time Mills has stood up for transgender rights. While the governor of Maine does not have authority over who plays sports in the public schools (the independent Principals' Association does), she has worked with the Maine legislature to prevent health insurers from discriminating against transgender people, to allow gender-affirming hormone therapy for those 16 and older and to enact a law that protects providers of gender transition care from being sued by other states.

In a statement after her open disagreement with Trump, Mills made clear that the stakes went beyond transgender rights. "You must ask yourself: Who and what will he target next, and what will he do? Will it be you? Will it be because of your race or your religion? Will it be because you look different or think differently? Where does it end?"

Of his own early collaboration with the Nazis, German pastor Martin Niemoller famously wrote: "First they came for the socialists, and I did not speak out -- because I was not a socialist.

"Then they came for the trade unionists, and I did not speak out -- because I was not a trade unionist.

"Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out -- because I was not a Jew.

"Then they came for me -- and there was no one left to speak for me."

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